My husband is a cabinetmaker with his own business and has been building cabinets and furniture for 23 years. If he'd made the island with the wrong wood, he would have absorbed the cost and remade it.
@@JulieBlanner As a cabinetmaker I would have replaced the island in a heartbeat. I would have recommend bleaching the wood to get the red undertones out. I have done this in the past. Kitchen looks great!
I hope you got a DEEP discount for the island mistake. If you asked specifically for white oak the cabinet maker should deliver. I had a contractor trying to convince me to get things I didn’t want and it drove me nuts! He kept saying stuff like, “Laminate is a lot cheaper than butcher block,” for my mom’s apartment addition. I tried to explain that she has ALWAYS wanted butcher block and it was such a small countertop that the cost really didn’t matter. He actually talked my mom into the laminate when I wasn’t there! She said she worried about us spending so much money that she felt like she should get the laminate instead. I don’t mind when contractors suggest things or have advice about structural issues but when it comes to decor we should get what we want! And your kitchen is beautiful! Love you cabinet style and your unlacquered brass fixtures. Also love your copper mixer.
Sadly, no. That was just one of many battles. I'm grateful it's over 😂. That's so frustrating! You're absolutely right. Thank you so much for following along!
I had to fire a handy man for telling me how to design my garden. Every day he would comment on my decisions. He wanted me to bring in horrible cement statues. One day it was just too much. I paid him and told him not to come back.
Julie thanks for sharing your lessons learned! We ditched our microwave years ago and we haven’t missed it. If you ever remove yours it’d look lovely using the microwave “hole” for some pretty cookbooks.
Beautiful kitchen and I love the beadboard backsplash. And, not a criticism but just letting you know that the background music competed a bit with your voice.
I loved the bead board too. It is so warm and friendly. I was supposed to get it behind one of my cabinets that is on a separate wall from the others but it never happened and fell through the cracks. I need to make a list of the few undone things and tackle them one by one. Still hers is gorgeous and look to me like real tongue and groove planks.
Your kitchen is pretty but if you ordered the white oak and paid for the white oak and you didn't get it, it is the guy that you bought it from problem. The answer he gave you of "well that is what I always use" was an excuse for either his mess up or he didn't want to spend the money to buy the product you wanted. You paid him for it and if he could not provide that he should not of taken you money or given you your money back so you could go somewhere else to get it. These people bank on the fact that the consumer will just settle for whatever. I am sure had he bought something from someone and paid for it he would not just settle. I would of made him redo it.....he needs to pay attention better and get more organized if he has that much business otherwise he will run his own self out of business.
Thank you, Wendy! I wanted nothing more than to do that - but with the kitchen torn up and him in no hurry to make it right, I settled and learned valuable lessons. Since, I have definitely spoken up for myself a bit more. Needless to say, this is why we have yet to approach our big master bedroom/bathroom/laundry room remodel 😂. Thank you SO much for watching! I have some really fun videos coming soon!
@@JulieBlanner I would have done the same thing though. I just can't hold someone's feet to the fire unless the mistake is going to kill me or someone makes me angry. But it is heartbreaking that you didn't get the oak you ordered.
You have a design idea and then others make it difficult. I think the island looks nice but its not your dream and I get it. Id love to have a paneled fridge one day!
I would love to hear your thoughts on the bead board back splash. I am planning to do that in my kitchen soon and have had several people tell me that it is a bad idea. Yours looks fabulous!
Thank you for the video. Just FYI the sound quality is not great. I couldn’t understand several things that you said in the beginning and you can really hear the echo not being miked.
Thank you, Maine. I am miked, it I do live in an old home which creates some sound issues. Unfortunately I never dreamed I'd be doing video when I purchased it.
Your microwave will go into full swing when your children become teenagers. I don’t know what it is with teens and them constantly heating up food in the microwave (well, they’re always hungry for one - and so are their friends). 💁♀️
😂 very possible! Though they cook with me so it’s all they know. As a former caterer I always make exactly what we need and we never have left overs...that may have to change!
The red alder island is a beautiful compliment to the unlacquered brass fixtures with the brass colored mixer. It looks intentional and adds a lovely warmth to the space.
I love your kitchen it's so gorgeous! I def would've complained to the builder about the island being the wrong wood though! New subscriber and I can't wait to see more from your intro your whole house looks gorgeously decorated.
Actually Julie - do you have the paint brand and color match code ? I absolutely love your kitchen color too - obsessed; didn't realize it was a match!
I know it would be a big expense, but you could add two seats on the end of your island if you extended the counter top to hang over the end. You could add corbels if needed. I'm not fond of the island color either. You might consider right out painting it a "trend" color. Over all, it is a stunning kitchen.
I've considered it - for the most part it works, but it becomes the heart of the kitchen when entertaining. Thank you for the suggestions and your kindness! Hope to see you again soon!
I would LOVE to do that and have considered it. The way it was installed there's damage that we wouldn't be able to cover up if we did...it still may happen someday when I get a wild hair!
It’s so hard sometimes to fight contractors. Every renovation I end up getting talked out of adding height to the upper cabinets even though I promise myself next time I won’t (this latest one they arrived the shorter height and it wasn’t worth the fight to have them changed). But I did have the countertop taken back and corrected (turned up without the ordered beveled edge) and am SO glad I did.
YES! I suddenly lose all strength. Good for you! It's truly difficult to advocate for yourself sometimes but at the end of the day, it's you who has to live with it. Thanks for watching!
My biggest regret is letting my husband talk me into getting a kegerator on the kitchen island. He only used it 6 months & never maintained it. I turned into a reg fridge but the damn pour is still chilling there. We're moving soon & never, ever again.
This island wood situation makes me a little sick. We had several 'miscommunication' issues with our cabinet maker. Bad ones. I got partial overlay doors instead of the inset. Instead of scribing a panel for the wall, he just put up 3/4 inch shoe molding to cover the gap. This is what I see in trailer houses I've lived in. (I gave THREE examples of the end panel design I wanted.) The drawers are only 14 inches deep. There's eight inches of lost drawer space in the back. At least six inches could've been used. The drawer fronts are just slab and not the framed that I ordered. For some reason, he decided to make the toe kicks MASSIVE for the cabinets up against the walls, but decided that toe kicks were overrated on the island. I have an island with NO toe kicks, and no trim. It's just plywood sitting on the flooring. (The flooring has 1/2 inch gaps everywhere, BTW) He DOUBLED the thickness of the face frames. I ordered 1.25 inch wide face frames. He made them 1.25 inch wide PER CABINET. So I've got big, 6 inch tall drawer fronts, but the actual drawers are only 2.25 inches deep. I can't put a pancake flipper in them. Most of the drawer fronts are just covering face frame. None of the cabinets for the wall of pantry cabinets are the same width. None of the face frames on the pantry are the same widths. The big bottom door panels go about an inch off the floor so there's no room for trim, but the doors for the two tall cabinets are 3 inches from the floor. There's NO WAY TO TRIM THEM. There's NO WAY TO LINE THEM UP. AND NOTHING ABOUT THE PANTRY MATCHES *ANY* MEASUREMENT IN THE ISLAND. I gave him TONS of pictures. I gave him schematic drawings. But the worst is that - for some unimaginable reason - a router was taken to every cabinet corner in the kitchen to round them over. And it's done badly. All warbled. My husband thinks that one was damaged and the installers decided to just round them all over so they'd match. The router marks don't go all the way to the floor or ceiling, so I think he's right. They hand-routered them in place. I ordered the most basic, inset, face frame, Shaker style cabinets and got... this. The builder said that I wasn't specific enough. I could have everything rebuilt - if I paid cash. When I pointed out the things that I was SUPER specific about (INSET, dammit!!) he then gave me a sob story about firing the cabinet maker. Now I knew that the installer did the most egregious things and I had gotten to know the builder well enough that he's the one who cut the drawers short to increase his profits. My husband was so exhausted by the entire build process that he just wanted it over. He said we'd fix it all later. It was a total tear out and I didn't trust them to get it right the second time. Forcing them to fix it felt like throwing good money after bad. This is the story of ALL the finish work. The tiles, the cabinets in the bathrooms, the master shower, the guest shower, the freaking WINDOWS. All wrong. 1/3rd of a million dollars for the shoddiest finish work I've ever seen in my life. The entire house looks like it was done DIY. We're slowly fixing it, room-by-room. We will never have enough money to pay someone to fix it. My husband works constantly and he just doesn't have time to do it himself. He's already exhausted. So I'm having spinal surgery so I'm able to DO something, healing up, and going out to the damn shop to fix it myself. Yes, I'm learning how to build and trim my own cabinets. We already have most of the tools I need, I just have to learn how to use them. Hubs said he'd help me break down the plywood into manageable pieces and I'm taking it from there. Our daughter apprenticed for a tile mason for two years and she's ready and willing to get her hands dirty. DO NOT HIRE A BUILDER UNLESS YOU CAN *SEE* THEIR WORK FIRST AND SPEAK TO OTHER CUSTOMERS. Do NOT take the realtor's word that 'he's a great guy.' Some realtors are horrible and just don't care. And if your gut says something's wrong LISTEN TO THAT GUT. It knows something you don't. Don't believe that you have no other options. There are always other options. Now I wish we'd bought a nice manufactured home and just planned to do it all ourselves from the start. Saved ourselves $150,000 and put that money into taking our time and doing the house right.
What a horrible story, I'm so sorry! I'm currently planning my kitchen remodel, and now I'm nervous! I hope you didn't pay that idiot the final payment for completed work. I would have invited him to take me to court, and brought pictures.
@@Geronimo2Fly We were pretty defeated at the time and just marched forward. A year ago I got my second spinal surgery. That went horribly wrong and I almost died, but now I'm strong enough to (slowly) do the work. I've spent the last seven years slowly buying the right tools, reading books, and watching every single video on cabinet making and home improvement that I could find. This week I'm finishing up the installation of my OWN moulding for the living room. I went with Craftsman for the entire house, so it's simple. I've also learned how to plaster walls and I've done three rooms so far. I've bought a tile saw and learned how to use it well. Next month I'm taking a deep breath and beginning to build the kitchen cabinets. Piece by piece, I'm going to do this. I'm getting my freaking dream kitchen in this lifetime if I have to build it myself, by God. And it looks like that's exactly what I'm going to do. Because of my spinal issues, my husband has to manhandle the big sheets of plywood and MDF, but I'm the one who breaks it all down (track saws are miracles), cuts it to size, and does the actual assembly.
I thought about that, but really love the “raw” look. I think you’ll like what we’re doing to our basement bath though! I still came close to the color we were hoping to achieve through stain, fortunately. Kitchen renovations are sure stressful! Thank you SO much for watching!
Julie, I love your kitchen sweetie. It's so BEAUTIFUL !!! Seems that your contractor might have taken advantage of your soft nature though with not listening to what you wanted on a few items you talked about. That's too bad. I've been there. I just found you from Lisa's channel and subscribed so I can hardly wait to get to see the rest of your home. Be well ♥️
I'm almost done with my kitchen remodel and it's an adjustment (mostly love it). Wish you could test run before committing. Some things you just can't know until you start living in it. Still, your kitchen is gorgeous and what a difference from before.
That’s just always what I use?!?! Hahahah. I would have told him "too bad.” It absolutely does look red. I would have been pissed. Especially spending all of that coin. Nope. He would have had to come through with what I asked him to.
Sounds like you battled your cabinet maker over your needs. I need a cabinet maker but don't want to fight over what I am paying for. I can't even find one in my location, just big box. How do you find a custom cabinet maker?
Great question! We found ours through word of mouth. Unfortunately it seems carpentry is a dying art and there are few in our area. If your city has a Facebook group, that would be a great place to ask. Hope that helps!
If you have Amish in your area, go to the local Amish store and ask for a referral; they do a wonderful job. I would never accept something different than what I asked for. You pay way too much and if they want good word of mouth, they need to do it right. I will actually pay a little more for great customer service.
We are redoing our kitchen right now, and I’ve been wanting marble countertops for years. You said that you’re happy with them, but I was wondering do they stain easily like everyone says? The countertop sales people, and even the installer are both saying I should go with quartz. I would appreciate your opinion on this so much thanks!
Hi! I have 0 regrets after having them in 2 homes. We've had them nearly 7 years now and I love them just as much today. You can learn more here and how to prevent staining julieblanner.com/danby-marble/ Enjoy!
I remodled my kitchen in my condo. It is modern and awesome, only to find out I wasted my money. When I went to sell it it added no more value to my condo. Word to the wise DONT do it too costly and you wont reap ANY financial benefits from it. Dont listen to the so called experts who tell you that it will. Take it from a common consumer that it WONT!!!
Such a beautiful kitchen!! To disguise the microwave you could install an un lacquered brass towel bar above/ over it and hang a decorative tea towel in front.
Jennifer Lane - we all use our kitchens differently. She said she seldom uses her microwave and you use yours all the time. Great! But I’m wondering why you have to be so snarky about the wine fridge. I don’t think you have any idea how much they entertain, how long the wine stays in the fridge before they drink it, etc. Your comment was rude.
Pre COVID, we entertained a lot. We also have an affinity for wine so when we travel to Napa we have it shipped back to enjoy for months and years to come. As a former caterer, I’m great at gauging how much food to make, so we never have leftovers. The microwave is primarily used to melt butter 😂. Even popcorn I make on the stove top, I’m kind of old school. Thanks for watching! Hope you’ll stop by again soon!
This island in red Alder is lovely & would suit my taste much more than one done in oak.. (as I am not a fan of oak at all!!!)....but your cabinet maker should have remade the island for you since it was his mistake.
First video watching on your channel. Great video, great editing and coloration. I just wish you had a mic on you. This video is almost perfect, but sound quality is painful. That small detail would make all the difference to taking this video to the next level. Love your work! Get the mic, let this channel skyrocket
Very interestig video for me. I am in the process of deciding IF I want to totally remodel my kitchen, and how to accomplish that if I do. I know I need professional help, but don't want a problem after all is done because professional A blames professional B for a technical issue. I have a very small kitchen (9 X 12) so I need a magician's help. What professionals did you use, and how much was there idea and how much yours. I'm a single guy with no design sense. As for your island color, if you were clear in ordering what color you wanted, I would have insisted on a redoo. An error is an error that you have to live with. I just found your channel today, and I am going to try your Cinnamon bread recipe.
It's amazing how you can maximize space through smart design. We did a lot of upgades including inset cabinetry, a range from France, integrated refrigerator, panel ready appliances, marble, etc, so I'm not sure ours is a great gage, but about $80,000.
I feel your pain with the Alder. Similar thing happened to me with a piece I bought for my kitchen. It’s freaking ALDER and not white oak. I was so mad then just heart sore. Well, woodwork friend said DIY it. Simple. Order white oak vaneer roll from Rockler. Easy to cut and you just iron it on. Then your stain and seal as you would any solid oak piece. You can do this!! I’m doing it.
Hi! Pretty much! We keep breakfast pretty simple - eggs, parfaits, cereal and fruit. We make sandwiches and salads for lunch and I cook dinner. I'm a pretty good gage of how much to cook for our family so we don't have leftovers. I tend to use the microwave to melt butter.
Loved watching this and all the others. I'm hoping to remodel in the next few years. So many wonderful tips! I do love your paint color on the cabinets. Are you willing to share which color it is?
My husband makes custom woodwork and is a contractor, and would have gladly replaced the island if he made that mistake. He could have sold it and gotten his money out of it. Shame on that man for guilting you into taking it. Have you considered whitewashing it? It's a pain to work with oil based white paint, but it can be done. Your kitchen is beautiful, but I feel your pain about appliances that stick out because they are obvious. My biggest kitchen regret it not insisting that entire wall had to come out and not just put a pass through opening in it. I said, "remove that wall" and hubby said that it would require putting in a load bearing beam in the attic. I said, ",and...?" And he told me he simply didn't want to. Grrr. So, I got a large pass through and I wish I had insisted that he remove the wall because it would have completely updated the entire living area. We live and learn.
Thank you! I LOVE that idea, but kind of like the contrast. Thanks for the suggestion! Wish you were in Missouri - I want to do my bath and laundry room!
Your before and after pictures are wild! Isn't it amazing what white does for a space? About 5 years ago we did a very inexpensive kitchen makeover and I chose a more trendy tile backsplash. Now I wish I had installed white subway tile as I feel it is more timeless. In time we can replace it, but as you know there is always lots on the to do list. I love your beadboard backsplash too!
So much on the to do list 😂😭 And that is why I decided to go timeless because I grow tired of things rather quickly. We were able to gain so much space by eliminating the double ovens and separate stove top, replacing with a range, expanding the island and moving the fridge over by the mud room. I don’t miss my triangle at all now that I have storage space! Thanks for watching!
We are in the process of remodeling out kitchen. Hard time deciding on what type of kitchen sink to get. Curious how your Shaws farm out sink is holding up? I have heard mixed reviews on that brand, with cracking and staining and chipping.
This entire video I was thinking, what COLOR is that kitchen?? It's beautiful! Then at the end when you mentioned it was your favorite part of the kitchen, and that you have a north facing kitchen (which I do as well!) I was waiting on pins and needles to hear the color! Why didn't you tell us?? I'm dying here! Also, I'm flabbergasted that the cabinetmaker would give you a cabinet made with the wrong wood and expect you to keep it. A true professional would have insisted on doing it over. It sounds like several of your "regrets" are due to people either messing up or not listening to you. My designer has made a lot of great suggestions, but a few of them I didn't like. For example, she put the garbage and recycling cans on the opposite side of the dishwasher from the sink. I said no way, I want the dishwasher on one side and the garbage on the other, both within easy reach. She explained why she had put drawers on the other side of the sink instead of the garbage, but I said no, the drawers need need to go somewhere else and the garbage has to go there. So she said, "Okay, let's change that." I would be kind of mad if she insisted on doing something I explicitly said I didn't want. BTW, what's the COLOR LOL!
Hello! You can find the information about the paint used here: julieblanner.com/cream-kitchen-cabinets/ If you use the same color for your walls as your cream cabinets, your kitchen will instantly appear larger. We chose a true white ceiling paint, though, as we wanted the cabinets to appear truly cream! Thank you for your comment!
If you replaced the island top to include over hang on either end you would increase seating by one or two depending if you have overhang on one end or two.
Thank you! We considered that - on one end it wouldn't meet code and on the other it would impede with the walkway, but more often than not, it meets our needs. It's funny how everyone gathers around an island! Truly the heart of the home!
This is wild, I was planning to address the same subject next week and not only you, but four of my other four favorite RU-vidrs just did! I sympathise with for the island, not getting color you wanted, but the red alder is pretty with your copper stand mixer :) my biggest regret is not moving a door, which would have given me a lot more storage space, and... NOT integrating a microwave! We were anti-microwave when we did the kitchen, then bought one for family who were housesitting, and we ended up liking it! Now it takes up valuable counter space :(
The fridge is a thermador integrated and the dishwasher is KitchenAid. Thank you, Carla! Hope you’ll stop by again soon! I’m sharing the girls’ bunk bedroom today!
Biggest regret was staining my new birch cabinets as dark as I could when we built 13 years ago. Forehead slap. What on earth was I thinking? Thirteen years later and three months off our lives 😉we sanded them bare and waxed them et voila!! A dream kitchen for nearly no money! Took three more months to recover but it was worth it. Julie, I love your island color! I think it is the perfect contrast to your marble and paint color. Your whole kitchen is gorgeous. I did the unlaquered brass knobs too and they add so much character and warmth-that we will NEVER regret!! ☺️☺️
So much effort but much better than replacing! Glad you love them now! Thank you! We were able to come close to achieving the color through multiple stains, it just didn’t apply as well as we hoped and I love that “raw” look. I love that you share my love for unlacquered brass! It’s funny when contractors come in our home - they assume it’s original and we want to replace it 😂. Thanks for watching!
Julie Blanner Your island looks like my whole kitchen...just about that exact color. I used all knobs...no handles and even though that wasn’t originally the plan, it stuck! We girls and our kitchens...😉☺️☺️💪
Thank you! I used stain to try to achieve an aged white oak look. I think we went through 30 samples 😂. Needless to say, I obsessed. Thanks for watching!
Love ur feedback. It seems like after all the planning, going with ur gut in design is not a regret, versus allowing others cut corners. This is so helpful as I’m finishing up the design phase on my own kitchen.
We remodeled the kitchen in our 1915 home and were 99.999999% happy with the cabinet maker. He understood our need to be try to be authentic to the home's age, even suggesting the cabinets be made out of quarter sawn oak. There have been various people since it's 3 years, that people have seen our kitchen and asked "Are these the original cabinets?" It's funny, the one thing I would do differently is 4 drawers, instead of 3, by the dishwasher and sink, and I remember discussing it with him. With such a big project, I can deal with such a small regret.
Bonjour! I am just starting to plan my long awaited kitchen remodel. Can you tell me what color is your Lacanche? (The first decision I will be making for our french architecture cottage from the 1940's.) I love that you were able to get the paint to match the cabinets. I have a very small kitchen and think this will be a good strategy for me as well.
I totally like the idea of lighter tones of wood like white oak,pine,sunbleached driftwood- being paired with modern white,it just goes together..but red goes goes with rustic,so brightside 🙂.Also u might be able to extend your island with a mini marble top table with solid wood legs, slightly lower than the main counter to make it look intentional (just a thought ☺️).
Julie, I love your styling of your home. It is classic, warm, and inviting! We are in the process of renovating a 1940’s cottage. My question is, your kitchen is similar in layout to our plans - and was wondering if you would share the width dimension of your kitchen width wise. I worry that the walking clearance around our island will be tight. My thanks in advance. ☺️
Thanks, Gaye! I have considered that but since everything is inset, it would stick out - we may eventually remove the microwave and create a cabinet for an inexpensive one...but that would be the bottom of our endless priority list 😂
You’ve been way too nice to the builders!!!! It’s your house, you are going to live with it, not them! Thus I would have returned the island, since you’ve invested a lot of money in it also. If it was his mistake, sorry, but you shouldn’t have to pay for that with an island you don’t like for the next 20 or more years! Same with the microwave story. As for now: I’ld just paint the kitchen island a solid white so it tones in with the rest of your kitchen. Very pretty kitchen, but I agree with all your points. Blessings.
If the microwave is used that little, I'd consider having it relocated to a pantry, a porch area, or anywhere else. I did this with my freezer. I bulk shop and need big freezers, but the only thing I use a small fridge-freezer for is ice. So we put in an ice maker and got an all refrigerator. The freezers are tucked in a space in the hallway that's intended for a washer/dryer by the mudroom. (We have a washer/dryer in the master closet and don't need another set.) I have a LOT more fridge space, even with a counter depth fridge and it doesn't bother me to put my ice cream in the far freezers. And I eat a TON of ice cream. smh
Hi Julie I went to Sherwin Williams with your cabinet color. I wanted a sample for my cabinet color. Not sure that I have the right sample and also it did not need to be made for liquid for spray. Help!
I say just go dark on the island! Check out what McGee & Co done in their home, I think you'd like it better as it wouldn't be pretending to be something its not.
My biggest regret is forgetting that cabinets need handles. the house we were living ing during the design of the kitchen for the new house had cheap cabinets with no knobs or handles (you just grabbed the edge of the drawer). I used them for checking my measurements and I didn't think about my shaker cabinets needing clearance for the knobs in the corner cabinet. Well, when I was preparing to install the knobs and drawer pulls I realized my mistake. There is only one corner, and the countertops are laminate, so I can remove them and install a slightly narrower cabinet, but it still sucks to have to undo what I thought was finished.
That's not a regret - whew! Fortunately I love it - it's a custom color. You can get all the details here julieblanner.com/cream-kitchen-cabinets/ Thanks for watching!
Wu Gambina What bugs me is that many of her BIG, expensive regrets are not HERS. They are mistakes of others or others trying to push their agenda on her. The microwave, the island, the triple drawer. It bugs me because she is so sweet and i know that feeling of being warn down and giving in on something big like the island. She so sweet she even lists the things she’s so happy with. Still, her kitchen is really pretty and calming.
When you were speaking about your Island I saw more of you instead of the Island. Also, if possible can you label what you are speaking about because your accent makes it difficult for me to understand what specifically you are talking about?. I love your Kitchen , very white and bright!