Brass Cabinet Hardware for Shaker Cabinets

Shaker cabinets have been the “it” cabinets of Pinterest, Houzz and every show on TV that involves a modern kitchen remodel. They are clean, contemporary, and look good in many different kitchen styles.

The problem with shaker cabinets? Opening them without hardware can be a little bit if a pain. And, if cabinets are white or a pale color, grubby finger prints are going to be all over those cabinets all the time unless you have something to pull when opening them.

After viewing our almost completed kitchen cabinets, Andy immediately said, we have to get handles for these quick. Alright, done.

There are billions of knobs and pulls on the market. This article on Houzz walks you through some of the more popular styles of hardware for shaker cabinets. You can mix a combination of knobs and pulls or just choose one or the other, which is what we are planning to do since our cabinets are white and grey. This way, there is some cohesiveness between the island and wall cabinets.

The Delta Trinsic Faucet we purchased for the kitchen is the champagne bronze color and I want the pulls to match to tie it all together. After shopping online, I narrowed it down to three pulls, priced low to high.

Option A is the most affordable and the most modern. It is the Liberty 3 in. Champagne Bronze Bar Pull. Find them at Home Depot.

Option B is a wee bit more burnished in my opinion. It is the Atlas Hardware Successi 3 7/9" Center Bar Pull in Vintage Brass. You can find them from a couple of sites including Amazon and Build.com.

Option C is also modern and is the most expensive out of the three, but still under 10 bucks, making it a steal. It is the Atlas Homewares Successi Collection Champagne 4.68 inch Square Pull. I found them at Amazon for under $10, other places The Hardware Hut for $10 and more.

This weekend when we visit the house, I plan to make my final decision. Stay tuned!

Deciding on Upgrades

When building a new home, it is inevitable that you will go to the builder selection center. There you willl be bombarded with upgraded features for every square foot of your new property. It is easy to spend a fortune on upgrades. Knowing where to upgrade with the builder and where not to usually requires serious research and evaluation of the products available at the builder. For these reasons, here are three quick tips hit the builder selection center.

1. Opt for two appointments if possible,

2. Set the appointments at least a week apart so you can digest your selections,

3. Don't be afraid to visit the center again between appointments if you need to revisit selections.

We selected a ton of upgrades and then spent a week and a half mulling over the selections, checking prices, and even visiting the builder selection center on an off-day before returning to make our final selections.

In the end, we selected many upgrades. Three of the larger ones included upgrading the cabinets to shaker cabinets, upgrading the appliance suite, and countertops throughout the house. The cost of the cabinets were justified after we calculated the costs of upgrading cabinets. In addition, the cabinets are from a solid company. We upgraded the appliance suit since the upgrade price was significantly less the the same suite at Lowes. Lastly, It was a pain to upgrade the countertops in the last house, the cost to update the granite was minimal, but the cost of the Quartz was over the top. So, we updated the countertops to a granite color that would match cabinets.

Now where to save.

Lighting- just save your money and shop online.

Plumbing fixtures- see above.

Cabinet hardware- Also see above or visit a home improvement store.

One of the first upgrades we purchased was a Delta Trinsic Kitchen faucet. I wanted a satin brass color and I had a coupon. Actually, we visited a Ferguson showroom pricing items and fell in love the the champagne bronze color and faucet style. I've also ordered a few different cabinet pulls to compare their color and style to the cabinets and faucet. Overall. I am pretty excited about the choices we've made and it all coming together.

We Have Drywall and Cabinets

When building a new home it seems like during the first couple months, nothing is happening. For weeks we would just drive past an empty lot- waiting for the next thing to happen.

Then one day, it did. 

Before we knew it the slab was dried, the frame was up, there was a roof, and hardy plank.  Last weekend, the drywall was installed.

This week we discovered we had kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, wall and ceiling texture. The trim and interior doors were in the garage awaiting installation.

Also we noticed the makeshift sidewalk leading to the front porch was gone- I hope to see concrete and brick next weekend.

August can not get here fast enough.

Getting Back in the Swing of Things

In December, I graduated college.

In June, we sold our house.

This August, we move into the new house we're building.

It's a David Weekly. I am super excited to start documenting the process.

This photo was from this past weekend.

Roomba versus Dyson- A Dog Owner's Review

After my husband and I installed laminate flooring throughout the main part of the house, we decided me needed a special vacuum. One for laminate of course. Something we could just whip out and go to town with. The first stick vac we purchased was the Electrolux Ergorapdio  it lasted less than one year before the battery would not hold a charge and it started not sucking.It was a total pain to clean out and the removal hand vac was stupid, it really did not suck up fine particles just larger one like a dog hair tumble weed. So, off it went to the Best Buy Electronics Recycling. Which if you have never used this service, it's free and you need to get on the ball!

Our next purchase was a Roomba 650. The pros included that fact that it was incredibly easy to clean out, the parts are replaceable, that it obviously did the work for me and did a fairly reasonable job of picking up small particles. In addition, it goes right back to it's little home and even has a timer of when it should go off which is actually bad (I'll explain later.) Also, it runs for while (1-2 hours at my house) and goes from tile, to laminate to carpet with ease.

Now the cons, first and foremost, it is a robot, it does not care about your furniture. Roomba relies on contact which is bad for goods. All my furniture legs are now chipped and missing paint. It sucks. Also, this Roomba is loud. You can not run Roomba and watch TV just like you would not run a vacuum and watch TV. It also gets stuck on stuff and does not fair well over looped rugs. I rescued Roomba several times when it was stuck in my AV cables beneath the entertainment center. And Roomba almost completely destroyed my Mini Pebble Wool Jute Rug from West Elm. I actually ended up having to pick it up and get a flatweave. Lastly, the biggest con for Roomba, it does not know when it should NOT vacuum something.

Remember that timer I mentioned? We set our Roomba to go off on a timer at 2 pm daily. We are not at home and this way Roomba finishes up the work right before we walk in the door. One day, Roomba vacuumed over something it was not suppose to. My senior dog had a very bad accident in the kitchen. You can image what happened next. From the back door to the front door, over the new flatweave rug and elsewhere, Roomba made a massive mess before it finally died. That's right folks, my Roomba died of poop ingestion. Not something you think will ever happen, but Roomba is just a robot, it does not know when to not go over something or run into it.

After a massive clean up and proper disposal of Roomba, we now found ourselves in need of a new vacuum. This time we sprang for the Dyson V6 Motorhead. I did not buy this vacuum because it is pink. Although when I first saw it at Target one day I sent a photo to Andy to show. Fate brought me to this vacuum. Fate and dog poop. Installation was a breeze. The adaptability and use of the trigger switch making operating the Dyson V6 simple and sort of fun. It's not heavy. On the lowest suction setting it picks up the smallest particles. I can actually tell you in full faith that the Dyson V6 picks up particles better than my Roomba or Electrolux ever did. The battery does not last as long as the Roomba, but it does last longer than I need in order to clean up 700 sq.ft. or so. It is marvelous at picking up pet hair and best of all, will not try to pick up pet poop on its own.

As much as I loved my Roomba, I do not recommend for pet owners, lovers of vintage furniture, rugs or anything that the little robot will come into contact with. Go with the Dyson, you will not regret it.

**Update** After using my Dyson V6 Motohead to clean up fine FINE particles from my new kitchen quartz installation I have come to the conclusion that it is superior to the Roomba. The newest con is I have discovered when using the "max" setting for an extended period of time, the motor gets pretty warm.

Kitchen Reno Sneak Peek & Twitter

Yes, I know I said two months ago to look for me to return in December. However, I have two things I am dying to share. One, my mini kitchen reno that is going to rock and two, you should be following me on Twitter.

First the mini kitchen reno. Here is a small snap shot of my current kitchen situation.

It's a dark situation. When we were building the home, we actually chose the best of all the available materials that would be "free" since we were updating the cabinets. Now here is where we are going.

The tile is from Lowe's, Allen + Roth Venatino . We chose it because it works well with the existing floor tile in the kitchen and the new countertops we ordered which in the one on the right, Daltile Chipped Ice Quartz. Installation is supposed to start this weekend, which is exciting!! We also will get a new sink and we have hung a new light fixture in the breakfast nook.

Also, seriously, follow me on Twitter. My twitter feed is mainly work focused but that does not mean it's boring. It actually means it's informative because it's all about recycling and living a green lifestyle. @sherrellcordas is where it's at if you want to scoop out green lifestyle tips and info.

Time Flies with Colorful Barstools

Am I having fun?  You bet your bottoms.  I can not believe it has been over a month since my last post.  Needless to say I have been busy.  BBQ Cook-Off, school, work, school, work, bought a dishwasher, work, more work and cleaning house. 

So have I done anything around the house?  My answer is the same as it was a month ago.  No.  Although I need to do stuff around the house.  For starters, we discovered our master shower has leaked a little into our closet.  So I have to fix that.  The backyard?  It looks like freaking Jurassic Park back there. We lost a weekend to being lazy after a hockey game, another Saturday was lost to errand and dish washer shopping and then the majority of my evenings have been spent watching Fraiser on Netflix and browsing Pinterest.   So NOTHING has been done.  I have missed to Sherwin Williams sales and I have rooms to paint.  I have just about give up on searching for a breakfast nook table.  

Do you hear the violins in the background?  Right now I don't even want to think about what my Feedly looks like.  Gracious it has got to be bad.  To make up for it, here are some colorful barstools.

They are happy, fun, and look great with natural wood or white or both. 

Contemporary Kitchen by Auckland Kitchen & Bath Fixtures Lucy G Creative NZ Photography & Splashbacks

Midcentury Kitchen by Other Metro Interior Designers & Decorators Urbanism Designs

Midcentury Kitchen by Los Angeles Interior Designers & Decorators Susan Jay Design

Mid Week Update

Wow, school dudes.  Papers, tests, studying, memorizing, note taking, on and on.  I am freaking tired.  Normally at this point I would be looking to the weekend for relief from the daily grind.  Nope, not this weekend.  This weekend I am finishing up a paper for my Communications Theory class.  Exciting right?  In theory.

It's important that I get this paper done before Sunday so I can start studying for a test next Saturday that I need to be prepared for on Friday because guess what folks- it's time for ROUND TOP TIME!

This year, the top of my list includes a round breakfast nook table.  My wonderful mother-in-law has decided to give me antique industrial bistro chairs that belonged to her grandma.  Uber awesome right? So I need to get rid of the pub table and find something these 5 chairs can anchor to.  Currently they are painted a blue shade from what I remember, but I am thinking multicolored is the way to go.

Multi Colored Dining Chairs,The Design Files

Multi Colored Eames Dining Chairs, unknown source

Multi Colored Industrial Cafe Chairs, unknown source

Colorful Industrial Chairs, House and Home

Mid-Week Update

Okay, so this last week started school. Labor Day weekend the living room/ kitchen/ breakfast nook was painted. Labor Day I played catch-up and yesterday was lawn work. Needless to say, I've been a little busy. I am hoping this weekend I will be able to throw up a photo or two of the new living room. I want it all pretty so I can enter the Apartment Therapy Room For Color Contest like last year. I am still up in the air about a couple of things and missing some pieces here and there, but for the most part it's done and I love it. Hopefully this weekend I can get the results out there.

New House Con #52- Let's Settle Down

New houses smell great. They look pretty. They have a ton of energy efficient features and they come with a clean slate.

A problem with my new house I keep running into is that the house has only been settling into the ground for the last 4 years. So I have a lot of small drywall problems. Praise joint compound And its easy application.