The Real Deal II: The Dollhouse Kitchen

So I warned in a few previous posts that I’d be slightly decor-biased when it came to my blog categories post new-home-move-in… well a little more than slightly, haha!

First things first…I mentioned briefly in The Real Deal post why I call my home The Dollhouse. Mainly because it’s considerably smaller than the home I moved out of. But I thought it was so cute, and it reminded me of the play 2-story dollhouses with the miniature furniture from my childhood, like this one.

And because my last home had such large pieces that would never fit into this new home, I had to outfit it with scaled down items. So I call it The Dollhouse because everything is much smaller. But I’m still so very happy and grateful to be able to call this MY home.

I’m starting with the kitchen as the first featured room because you will see it in almost every photo shot on the first level of the house! And it’s the room I ponder the most because I feel like I have the most work to do in it. Referencing The Real Deal post again, I talked about not being able to get everything you want when you’re outfitting your home from the ground up. That is truer than I ever thought it could be. And I remind myself of that every time I contemplate my kitchen. Here’s what it looked like on move-in day.

Here’s what it looks like now.

I’m not big on having a lot on my counter tops, including appliances. I like to keep it minimal.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t like my kitchen, I do, but I had such grand hopes and desires. I go through my wish list every time I walk in, through or past it, or when I’m just sitting on the sofa and I happen to look over there. I want desperately to add a “box” and crown molding to the top of the cabinets, taking them all the way to the ceiling. Those 18″ that are left haunt me at every turn. I thought I’d be able to get them during my design meetings but my little feelings were hurt when I found out that in order to get that I’d have to purchase the highest/most costly cabinet package for that to even be an option, which would add several thousand dollars to my total. It’s funny I never knew this was “a thing” I’d want until I started spending so much time on Pinterest!

I opted not to get a backsplash because I wasn’t thrilled about the tile choices and the ones I really liked were custom, i.e., a whole lot more that my budget could handle. After a little investigating I realized I could take my time and find a tile I loved and hire someone to install it for me after I moved in. I tried to get it done this summer but once again couldn’t decide on which tile I wanted. Then of course I found one on someone’s Instagram page and I fell madly in love, until I found out the cost. Let’s just say I honestly didn’t know they made tile that much per square foot! So I’m leaving it for now, to address at another time.

Side note: Am I crazy for not wanting a farmhouse sink? Ok, moving on…

Then there’s the hardware for the cabinets. Again, at my design selection meeting, I opted not to have any because I wanted them to be as non-distracting as possible, being that you see them from everywhere on the first level. I didn’t want to see a lot of gold or silver or brushed nickel at every angle of the house. But now they look like a dressed up girl at a party with no earrings on. So I will be adding cabinet jewelry soon. Having added my own hardware to my Master and Guest bathroom cabinets, I feel I may be able to tackle the kitchen cabs myself soon. Hmmm, we’ll see. Stay tuned!

And this is a big, big, big one… I always wanted marble countertops but of course, even a new-build newbie like me knew marble was out of my league budget-wise, but I was told quartz was a great substitute, so quartz it was. While I like my beautiful Carrera Quartz counter top, it’s not quite as white as I’d like it to be. In fact, it’s actually closer to grey. (sigh) One day… maybe… I can’t even speak it!

Other features I would have loved and looked into were, the range top and dual ovens, moving the can light over the sink back just a tad from the window so I can add a chandelier, and having my refrigerator flush with the top cabinets and pantry. (There’s a design term for this but I can’t remember it.)

I realize this all may sound a bit ungrateful and complaintive, but I do feel incredibly fortunate and extremely grateful to be able to own my own home, and to be able to decorate and style it. All in all I’m happy with my little kitchen, and if I’m honest with myself, I’m only not happy with it when I begin to compare mine to all the beautiful blogger’s versions I follow on Instagram. I must stop that! I’m learning to be satisfied and content day-by-day… I think, I hope!

I said all this to say, one… KITCHENS ARE EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE!!!! I could have forgone every single upgrade in my house and still not been able to get everything I wanted in there! Not without a sponsor or a miracle check, haha!!! Two… a decorator is never EVER finished modifying and decorating their home. Three… home decor-wise, I should stay off Instagram and Pinterest. And four… you never get everything you want. And that’s the real deal.