Choices!

At my SR project, the granite countertops are installed in the kitchen as well as  the new sink and  faucet.  The countertops look very elegant with the cherry cabinets.  My dilemma (since resolved) was finding a backsplash that will look good with the granite top (sleek) and not clash with the beautiful cherry cabinets (classic). Mixing these sleek/classic elements has not been easy.  Tiles that I love against the granite do not accentuate the cherry cabinets.  The cabinets are well-crafted, and they deserve to be highlighted to showcase their construction and quality.

 I've been looking online and getting samples of this and that.  I was at Lowe's yesterday, to fetch tile mud and corner bead.  I was browsing through the glass tile mosaics, and  I found a graphite glass and slate strip mosaic. I bought one sheet of it to take it to the house. However, after looking at it against my own cabinets, I knew it would be perfect. I have black-flecked Corian and alderwood cabinets--I was very pleased with how this looked.  I ordered it on-line and will pick it up this a.m.  It appears to my eye to be a perfect mix of color and texture which I believe will 'marry' the floor, the countertop and the cabinets:

• the graphite and white glass picks up the black/silver from the granite
• the gray slate in the mosaic picks up the gray from the floor
• and the rust colored slate pulls in the pretty reddish brown from the cherry cabinets.

Another big plus....I plan to keep the hammered copper, colonial hardware. 

I've been avoiding the 'big box stores' for my sourcing, but frankly, this was right there to see, get a sample and then pick up.  I guess I was just being a sourcing snob.  I'm glad to put this decision behind me, and find that I agonize over just the right products (paint, lighting, flooring, countertops, plumbing fixtures).  My designer friend helps keep me tethered in my decision making--however she's in Japan, so I'm floating around impatien

With some kitchen lighting (both under cabinet and overhead), I can brighten up the space considerably.  My husband is telling me that the under cabinet lighting is a "job" (and I know that from our own installation). However, it is a nice amenity, and provides welcome task lighting.  I bought this light to the left to go in the kitchen.  It will add a nice touch plus it will illuminate the space, which is now quite dark.


For the front door, I bought a pair of lights that were quite large. They look terrific from the street, and adding visual interest to the plain front of this door is important.  But the boxes need to be shorn up--a brick chisel to get the old box out and a couple of hours of labor each (ugh, for my husband), will mount them nicely.

The master bath is a mess. The previous owners, as part of the rehab before sale,  cobbled together two vanities in an effort to cover a hole in the floor.  I will have to get this fixed--and I believe that I have to demo the entire bathroom and start over. 

More choices. . . .