Nesting on a whole new level

They say the "nesting"  phase hits you in your second trimester of pregnancy. I have taken the concept to a whole new level and decided our kitchen needs to be revamped before baby girl is here in August (really September). My husband is a saint. We are approaching the redesign with  "Compromise is the cornerstone of marriage." Like all things design and taste-wise, we differ and will need to come together to think of each other's needs during this process.

As a reminder, here is what our kitchen looked like during our initial house tour back in August:

Yikes! It sure is larger than our kitchen at Duplin but I feel like I am on the set of Mad Men. If you can envision the kitchen table and side desk gone, island swung over to the left of the counters, and a stainless steel fridge, this is the footprint we are working with.

Of course, with no budget and an endless supply of money, my kitchen would resemble:

Color scheme is white painted cabinets, brass hardware, brass fixtures, gray subway tile, gray and white marble/granite, and keeping our darker floors. Initially I assumed we'd be gutting the entire space and installing new custom cabinets. Ironically, all four contractors we had come out agreed we should really keep the cabinets we have based on their quality and condition. My husband was all in on saving tens of thousands of dollars. Our ideas have finally formed into a concept and we think we have a direction we want to move in.

1. Paint Cabinets and Install New Hardware - 

Can you envision the ones above (ahem, my actual ones) painted white with brass hardware? 

My inspiration:

The spindle style on the fridge and freezer really struck me, and I always like to be a little different than what's "trending," such as the cup pulls.

I definitely think this style goes with the age of our home and style of current cabinets. I need 12 pulls for drawers. 

Thoughts? I like this is intricate looking but not sure how my husband will feel. We need 17 of these - 19 if we add another upper glass cabinet!

I also like this one - which one do you think will tie in better with overall theme?

3. New Granite/Marble for Countertops

4. New 8 Foot Custom Island and Counter Stools

(My hope is to get pull out double trash and double recycling bins).

This island is somewhat along the lines of the seating we'd like to include, with one on the end for a 5th chair.

My husband has got some serious opinions on the counter stools. I am REALLY hoping I can get my way with these gorgeous warm gray counter stools from Ballard Designs that I've coveted since becoming a homeowner. Honey, if you're reading, these have free shipping and reviews are that they're comfortable on the tush and back, without obstructing view of the kitchen. The compromise is we are designing a higher level island to accommodate my 6'7" husband, and these come in barstool height, not just counter height. See? Compromise.

5. New Faucet and Undermount Sink:

Again, compromise is the cornerstone of any good marriage. My ideal faucet is a bridge style, but I have to think function and practicality as I become a new mom. Khaner feels with the dogs, the amount of cooking we do, the frequent use of our sink requires a pull down faucet. We are meeting halfway with his style faucet and my polished brass finish. This faucet and sink featured below come from a former client of mine, Signature Hardware. Their prices, selection and customer service are great if you are in the market!

As much as I love a farmhouse sink, we are leaving our existing cabinetry and footprint, so had to go with an undermount style. There will be a matching polished brass flange for garbage disposal.

6. New microwave for over the range

Thankfully the vent to microwave conversion "should" be an easy swap with a small outlet installation. We are hoping to free up as much counter space as possible.

Sources:

1. Spindle Pull

2. Knob Pull 1

3. Knob Pull 2

4. Cararra Marble inspiration 

(we will buy from a local vendor)

5. Pullout Polished Brass Faucet

6. Undermount sink

7. GE microwave 

(hoping one of our friends can help us with an at-cost discount)

We are also "playing around" with moving some appliances around, adding 1 new upper cabinet with glass for barware, and one custom corner cabinet for cleaning supplies, but we have to check budget, of course! I think this summer is going to be interesting, but in the end, when we bring home that sweet nugget from the hospital, I know it will all be worth the short-term pain for long-term gain.

eCommerce Expert

I can't help it. I LOVE sharing a great deal. Last weekend we had our little Finley neutered and micro chipped. The micro chip website wanted $45.00 for lifetime tracking. I used my handy Retailmenot.com site to find any promo codes and voila! $20.00 off $45.00? I will take it!

In other news, my hunt for the best newborn essentials continue. If you recall from my latest Marks and Spencer post,  I scored some great deals for our little Charlotte. But of course, I am not done.

My background in ecommerce has taught me that today's consumer wants an offer. A unique, compelling, can't turn down, have-to-click buy-before-I-change-my-mind offer. And I am certainly that consumer. Brands, guess what? You don't "own" your customer anymore. The only way you do is if you have a very unique shopping experience, select inventory, and high customer service. The kind of customer service that believes their customer is always right, even when they're not. This all leads buyers to deals and promos. If they can't get a deal from their "brand," they will go elsewhere. And it has been proven that they do. Amazon Prime? Ever heard of it?

So when I fell in love with these solid zip-up sleep and plays from Old Navy, and saw they were asking $15.00 per outfit, I almost walked away. This child will only be wearing them for a few months each. However, patience is a virtue I am working on. After subscribing to Old Navy's email, (30% off entire purchase) and then finding an additional 15% off promo code for Baby Items (expiring midnight tonight Khaner), I decided 45% off my entire order was pretty good and I could live with that. If you ever want a deal from a retailer, try subscribing to their emails (my 15 month stint in email marketing).  I am glad I was patient and pulled the trigger with ones I really liked, which are solids. Carter's has some good deals, but my kid doesn't need cats, foxes and aliens all over her clothes, even if her Daddy thinks that's being "well-dressed." I am trying to take on the attitude that just because it's a deal, if I don't love it, wait for a deal on what I do love.

I love all white on babies, I can't help it. Her little pocket can even be monogrammed!

And of course, had to incorporate a little bit of pink for my princess!

For $5.95, I figured these slip ons would be parent-friendly in the spring and summer months.

Entertaining Etiquette

Over the weekend I hosted a baby shower for our friend Christy. It was only the second time I had done a shower on my own (first one being here).  I am sure you are thinking I was crazy for hosting a shower 5 months pregnant, but the truth is, I love doing them and have the energy for it, so why not? Christy had a sweet little girl a year and a half ago and welcomes her son in June.

My sweet husband was my official Shower Assistant, and ran errands, vacuumed the house, and played bartender for my cocktail drink. All had a wonderful time, and I  have to say, my tried and true shower menu was a success. My secret to being able to host these get-togethers is choosing room temperature food that can be prepared the night before and purchase the rest ready-made, but equally tasty. As a child, I noticed that my mother insisted on enjoying all occasions she hosted, and that trait has been instilled in me ever since.

Fool Proof Make Head Shower Menu:

Fried Chicken from Harris Teeter 

Carolina Caviar (Recipe here, made night before)

Crudites with Green Goddess Dressing (Recipe here, made night before)

Fruit Salad (Cut up strawberries and tossed with grapes, blueberries and raspberries night before).

Ham Rolls (Recipe here, prepared morning of, baked off just before guests arrived)

Cake from Whole Foods or Guest's favorite dessert (Christy's is Krispy Kreme Dougnuts)

White Wine, Water, Lemonade

Punch or Cocktail Optional (I used Raspberry Champagne Punch from the Raleigh Junior League cookbook, HUGE hit).

I worked Friday evening on party favors and table setup to ensure plenty of time on Saturday for cleaning and last minute food prep.

I love to stuff these beautiful gold bags from Cassandra's Kitchen with various candies, depending on the type of shower. These blue wrapped cookies and cream Hershey's kisses were perfect for favors and apothecary jars for centerpiece.

My husband teases me on this strange habit of mine, but I tend to label all my bowls and platters the evening before so when I am rushing around just before "showtime," I can quickly fill food in the correct platter.

I love to frame all invitations and display them at parties. It just makes the whole event come full circle.

I found the cutest little baby boy shoes and carriages from Dollar Tree and sprinkled them around centerpiece and bar.

Table laid out for Saturday morning!

Straws, ice and garnishes for drinks are always critical for self-serve bars.

I tend to shy away from awkward games at showers, but  I figured filling out a name, birthdate, hair and eye color was easy and low-pressure. Christy got a kick out of reading all the guesses.

And most important, prepping food the evening before. There is nothing worse in this world than chopping, mixing, and cleaning up when you should be getting YOURSELF ready for your guests.

Carolina Caviar! A winner every time!

As you can see, fruits, vegetables, dressing and Carolina Caviar were ready to go for Saturday morning.

My one regret with the purchase of my sideboard is not choosing one with a a marble top. You can serve hot and cold items without worry of ruining the finish. As a makeshift buffer, I use silver trays.

Raspberry Champagne Punch from the JLR cookbook. I modified it with strawberry sorbet and prosecco, and taste was still delicious!  Recipe calls for 1 liter of Lemon-Lime Soda, 2 bottles of Champagne, 1 gallon of raspberry sorbet, and raspberries for garnish. Mix all ingredients together and serve.

Green Goddess dressing with crudites. Since the recipe calls for basil I inserted a couple of leaves in the top for garnish.

One of my favorite desserts I've done to date. The Daddy-to be was so sweet and dropped these off the morning of. I purchased the little carriage toothpicks off Etsy 

Not half bad!

I took our little girl's giraffe rocker out of her nursery and tied a baby boy ribbon around it to welcome guests at the front porch. Guest of  Honor and Hostess together!

What are some of your entertaining tricks?