Tags
accessorize, architecture, corbel, crown, diy, Home Depot, kitchen, mantle, miter box, molding, shelf
The most blaring vision of debauchery was our kitchen as it was left vacant of the intricacies and details that had inspired me. It was not how the kitchen design was even specified. I had cut out pictures and shown the kitchen designer and my awful builder what it was supposed to look like:
Yet I faced a striped down version of it that was void of any detail. When I pointed it out to my builder that I had wanted an over mantle at the very least, he quoted us a figure that was 1/4 of the cabinet cost!!!!
I figured we could tackle a mantle shelf with corbels, and, since they were low, they *must* be solid wood, but they could be of sub-par wood since they were going to be painted. For example, I didn’t need to pay a premium for cherry wood, which is aย stain grade, and more expensive, I just wanted the heaviness and density of wood. Normal home improvement stores just don’t carry things like this and what I wanted didn’t sell direct to the public (I spend more time trying to work around this issue!), but luckily we live relatively close to a specialized wood shop that was able to order it for me. After showing a friend who is an interior designer the picture of the corbels I wanted, she told me to expect to pay $1,000 a corbel โ yikes!! However, I got them for a little less than $300/piece…. I took that as a sign ๐
For the mantle shelf, you will need:
- 2 corbels
- 2 planks of wood
- 3 scrap blocks of wood
- Crown molding (we had to use base board molding flipped upside down with smaller, flat molding added to the middle, due to spacing issues)
- Drywall screws
- Saw
- Miter box
- Wood filler
- Caulk
- Sand paper of varying grit
- Paint (and primer) or stain
The two planks vary in dimensions based upon your crown molding projection, so if your crown molding would go 5 inches into the wall, the lower plank (or bottom of your mantle shelf), will be 10 inches shorter for the 5โ on each and 5 inches less in the width.
You will attach these two planks together with the scrap blocks of wood that are cut to the height of the crown molding minus the depth of the two pieces of wood. (You can also attach the bottom of the crown a little higher of the shelf, but the top of the crown needs to be flush with the top of the shelf.) Attach these blocks on the two short sides and one long side.
Once those are attached together, you will surround it with molding on 3 sides. This is where the miter box, saw and swearing come in handy, because outside corners are tough. If you are painting your shelf, then there is an advantage because you can fill in small cracks with wood filler and caulk ๐
Forgive the pictures, I don’t have the benefit of a professional photographer with lighting!
But, we weren’t done. Not by a long shot. There were many things I wanted to do to the kitchen to customize it and take it from a “stock” kitchen to a “wow” kitchen!
This is great. I really liked how you pointed out certain features in the pictures, which would have been hard to notice, otherwise. Let’s see more!!
Linda
Thanks, Linda!! I’ve spent the last week reading a LOT of blogs, since I’ve never written or followed one.
I MEANT to spent an hour or two looking at them, getting a feel, etc. but there are some really AMAZING blogs out there….about *everything* I’m interested in, art, dogs, architecture, parenting, etc. But, it’s probably a good thing, because I’m getting feedback on my blog, from blogs I like!
I love it ! We are going to start working on our house and there is so much to do I don’t wanna think about it. But how nice to live in house that shows your personality and makes you feel good. Great work !
Thank you, Deb!! I know *exactly* how you feel!!! I still have so much I want to do, that if I write it down, I become too overwhelmed … I found a lot of great resources for the finishing touches and would be more than happy to help with that ๐ I’m so happy you came by to look at my blog…and even happier that you liked what I did!
Eloquent, yet homey; that’s the feel I get from your photos. The work and the detail you incorporated show how very creative you are. Thanks for including the mantle project specifics. I think I am going to try this in my kitchen since it already has most of your color scheme and accents.
Thank you so much, Anita! I very much appreciate your comments and encouragement, especially since I have been struggling with the photos! I’ll also be posting on how to do the spice cabinets (warning – that was awful!), and adding molding to the top of the cabinets and ceiling, which we also did ๐
Really unique! I like it!
Thanks!!! And thank you for looking too!!
Thank you!! And I like your take on parenthood! You really do need to see the humor in it, sometimes just to get through a day or night. Most of the time, I try very hard to remember all the funny things, so I can repeat the stories later, preferably to my children’s embarrassment! And I loved your intro about putting a bottle together!!!
Thank you. If you need a place to write down those stories so you don’t forget them, consider leaving them on my blog for others to enjoy as well. I plan to turn the blog into a book sometime (hopefully) soon. I’m sure your kids would be so honored and thrilled to see stories about themselves in print!
I have never seen such beautiful kitchen as these. Architectural details really do enhance living spaces.
Thanks, Sara!
LOVE the idea of a mantle over the range. So unique, but so fitting. Beautiful!
Thank you!! I wanted the house to look old, so I had that “bump out” put in to look like an old fireplace that we had slid a stove into for present day use. Now, whether or not all that reasoning translated or not, I’m still not sure!
And I LOVE the idea of 30 hours in the day too ๐
what a lovely kitchen!!! i love your stove!!!!
I have never seen an overmantle in a kitchen before, what a unique and beautiful idea. Your blog is beautiful too.
whow! how do I get a kitchen like that?
Hey…Your kitchen rocks! I can see me snoozing on a nice little bed watching you steam me some green beans in there.
Arooo, Stuart
I have 3 dog beds in my kitchen for just such an occasion and I *always* welcome visitors, despite 4 dogs of my own! Just ask the neighbor’s beagle who howls at my door to be let in! Of course, I let him in, call his owners and just let him stay for a day or two … Woof-woof!
Oh, wow, this is THE most beautiful kitchen I’ve ever seen!
It is brilliant that you are learning so many new skills. I have always been an avid DIY female which was extremely rare in South Africa and now in England and now to top it all off, I work on our house from my wheelchair – many frustrating moments but I try to make the best of it! In England we call your builder a cowboy builder for some reason and I would have kicked him out very quickly so I am glad you didn’t let him get away with it. My hubby and I are in the process of restoring an old inn/pub that started life back in around 1650! It is glorious and we love it so much but have to take our time because we have run out of money and fix as we earn. Like you, we make things that look antique from modern materials. Keep up the good work.
Michele at lifesanapple.wordpress.com
Wowza, what a beautiful kitchen! I love every bit of it!
OMGosh thank you for liking me post so I could ‘meet’ you. I LOVE interiors! Keep them coming ๐
Great name for a blog! You and your husband are doing a wonderful job! Judging from your photo you are young and energetic! If you continue to write (I like your style) your ideas and the way you approach them could eventually translate into book(s)! Who knows!!
Loved some of your kitchen ideas! Like you, I loved the outdoor pendants, what a great idea! Used fixtures could be “antiqued” or painted and hung. I thought about it before, but your picture made it “jell” for me. Great look, thanks! Also loved the casual white kitchen with the library pulls, big brown checked toppers and like you, the white and taupe uphostery wing backs and benches, great mix. I hope you don’t mind, I copied those pictures. I will credit your site if I use them. Let me know if it isn’t OK.
Your words mean more to me than you know and I am sincerely, deeply touched! I feel like I have found a whole world of friends with the same aesthetic, same eye and same interests – it’s just amazing that I didn’t realize it was here all along, waiting for me!
Of course, you may use them! I’d be honored to have my piddly little blog mentioned!!! I actually found your blog the very first day I started reading blogs and I subscribed right away (I don’t think I even bothered with a like!) because I adored the tassel post! Then I saw your next post with the pictures from Anthropology, which I thought were divine!!
There is nothing like hearing someone you don’t know, who has nothing to gain, say something so encouraging…Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! ๐
Awesome pictures, awesome ideas! A friend of ours lives in Bergen, Norway, in an 18th century wooden house that simply opens into the woods from the back. Your house reminds me of theirs. How you get to do so much while running the house full time [yes??] beats me. Truly inspirational!
Wow this is exactly how I would want my kicthen! It’s perfect ๐
I love what you are writing about in your blog! Another one for me to follow!
Ahhhh, a white kitchen …. that’s our plan. Inspiring post, to say the least!
Perhaps one day I’ll have a similar post. Keep your eyes open and fingers crossed.
Reblogged this on purpleplusdesigns.
I’ve never done anything with home decorating or renovation before. I do love watching those on HGTV and TLC. My husband and I would love to build our own house one day (kind of like what his parents did). They bought a land with a trailer on it and pretty much build a house on it.
It is a great pleasure to visit your blog and to enjoy your wonderful posts here. I like that so much. I realize that you paid much attention for those articles, as all of them make sense and are very useful. Thank you very much for sharing. I can be very good reader & listener. Appreciate your work!
Hey there! You are certainly a brave soul. I love watching HGTV too and there are so many things I would love to try but the things I have done have not been to this scale. Thanks for compiling so many great ideas!
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I have never seen anything like this kitchen mantel, but it’s a great (i.e., “unique”) idea!
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Your comment about the corbels costing you only $300 while a designer quoted you $1,000 is spot on! It pays to be as handy as possible. Not only will “professionals” typically mark things up by 3 times what they paid, it is not in their interest to shop for the best price. I always remind myself that not only do I save 50% to 80% by DIY, since I have to earn nearly $2 for every $1 I spend, I REALLY save a lot when I do it myself.
There is a certain joy in accomplishment. I will never forget the Christmas Eve my son and I spent applying marble squares on the fireplace surround in our new home. Hubby had to work so my 8 year old son and I were alone. We put on Christmas music, lit some Christmas-scented candles and talked, just the two of us, while we worked. On Christmas Morning we had a lovely “new” fireplace for our family breakfast.