kitchen: butcher block

The cabinets in the kitchen of the old house appear to be original.
They are also the fun, original height of 31 inches (current standards are no less than 36). Perfect for the children, but not for myself or my unusually tall hubby.

We thought we were ready to tackle the kitchen, but there are too many unknowns.
A possible layer of asbestos tile under more than one layer of linoleum, closed off mystery panel behind
the stove, abandoned duct work, plumbing... I mean, if you know old houses, you know you stop talking about it when plumbing comes into play.

You see, there is no easy answer when working on an old house. Remember my previous questions- click here. Our solution for this space is practical. Make it user friendly, decorate, embrace and love it.

Our first priority was to raise the one work surface in the kitchen. It is big and a great space, but we
have to hunch over to use it. To make it more functional, we decided a piece of butcher block would look great and give us a large and higher work space. I looked at many options, but decided to ask my uncle if he had any ideas. Well, he did, and he made us the most beautiful countertop. I sent him the picture below.

- before -

- currently - it raised the counter to 34 inches -

- the detail is amazing - we love it -

the next few steps in the kitchen:
get it plumbed for gas- we love to cook and you must have a gas range
 paint all cabinets, replace their hardware, insert glass into a few of the cabinet doors


 * * * * *

in the details:

how to take care of your butcher block - click here

thank you uncle john- while it may be a part of the old house now,

this piece has already become a family heirloom