The Kitchen, Done.

[caption id="attachment_138" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Backsplash wall before."][/caption]

Backsplash wall after

 

Took another two days to replace the 1960's contact paper on the shelves, clear out more stuff from the shelves, figure out a place for the microwave which turned out to be too big to fit under the cabinet left of the sink like I wanted to, but it fit on the right side of the sink, and a few other small things. 

Moved a small 1960's era table and two 1970's era chairs from my back room (the junk room) to the kitchen, so now it is a proper eat-in kitchen complete with a walk-in pantry :)  I think it will show a lot better when I list the house.

My dogs hate it.  Before, I had a carpet runner between the back door and the archway to the living room.  Now, it's all clean, slick, shiny vinyl flooring... walking on it is no problem.  But if they try to run on it to go scare some poor squirrel out of the backyard, barking all the way, they slip-and-slide and loose all grip on the flooring.  It's actually very funny... think a drunk trying to walk on a ice skating rink :)  Poor pups!!  It's hysterical watching Binkie get halfway across the kitchen, then back up, and go through the living room, office, bathroom, and master bedroom, circling all the way around the house, to get out the back door!  I keep telling him if he would just WALK instead of RUN across the floor, he could save himself some time!  Coco's like 15 years old, so she pretty much never runs... the floor doesn't challenge her at all, yet she also walks around because she just doesn't like the way it feels on her paws, best I can figure.  Lassie the Cat isn't real fond of it either... but Lassie almost never goes through the kitchen anyway, preferring to get out through my bedroom window :)  Boy is he going to be pissed when I close that down for the winter!

Reminds me, that's another thing to add to the "to do" list:  Fix the doggie door, so it will securely latch.

[caption id="attachment_140" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Pantry wall before"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_148" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Pantry wall after"][/caption]

All told, not including the break one weekend for another yard sale, it took eight days to get the kitchen into shape. 

My total expenses were $69.72, for new electrical outlets and light switch, ice maker hookup and water line cap, white paint, PineSol (used the whole bottle!), contact paper, painter's tape, and new door handle for the back door.

The "before" pictures, sigh...scary stuff...be afraid, be very afraid.  The "after" photos  I made using the very nifty featured called "Make Panoramic Photo" in Vista's "Windows Live Photo Gallery"  program.  You take a bunch of different photos, and it will "stich" them together, to make a panoramic photo.  It actually works quiet good, although some of the alignments are a bit off - honestly, my wall's not split like it shows in a few of these.  But I thought they gave a much better idea of the finished kitchen.  Well, almost finished... I still have to clean the ceiling, mop & shine the floor, replace a light switch, a few minor things that I'm not worried about right this instance.  Anyway, here they are, enjoy!

 

[caption id="attachment_147" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Orange wall, after."][/caption]