the kitchen tour

here it is. after nearly a month of living in the house, i've finally got the kitchen-cupboard organization task complete. well, half complete. the upper cupboards are done. i'm pretending the lower cupboards don't exist. it's not that they're a total mess, they're just not ultra-organized yet.

i still haven't changed anything decorating-wise yet - like the wallpaper border, the drawer pulls or the dark cabinets, but that will come soon enough. for now i'm happy that it's clean and the counters are cleared off. i'd really like to paint the cabinets a lighter color, because then in early morning when the sunrise shines in it will be even brighter. right now the dark wood really absorbs that light.

i still haven't used the dishwasher...when i'm just cooking for myself and making a few dishes a day, it doesn't really make sense to me to have them stack up in the dishwasher. i might as well just take five minutes to wash them by hand, then they're clean and ready to go again.

beginning with the pair of doors on the far right, this is where i'll keep my nicer dishes, and the ones that coordinate with the color scheme i'm going to end up with. these cupboard doors will come off for open, convenient storage, with molding added around the edges to make it a little more architectural. i'll also paint the inside walls and shelves to brighten it up.

** this cupboard is still missing a shelf because of mis-measuring on my part. another trip to menards is needed to pick up another pine board for the second try. you know what they say - measure once, cut twice**

moving one cupboard to the left are my mismatched dishes, as well a a few sets of nicer ones that i haven't moved over to the other one yet.

then to the left of the sink i have my coffee/tea station, conveniently above the coffee pot and containing all my to-go mugs, of which i always take one to work with me in the morning, so they get used a lot. my irish cream is also kept next to the coffee pot.

the next cupboard contains the baking supplies, located above my kitchenaid mixer - which i use quite often - and the cannisters containing my flours, whole grains, etc.

on the opposite side of the window is the snack/cooking cupboard. since scott is sometimes at my house while i'm not there, the lower shelf is the one he can get into if he's hungry, with chips, salsa, popcorn, canned soup, chili, etc. then my canned goods - diced tomatoes, black olives, mushrooms, black beans and tuna are a few of my staples - are on the middle shelf, with rices, bread crumbs and other things less-used things on the top shelf.

right next to the stove are all my seasonings and spices. i'd like to get another stair-step organizer for the top shelf, but this is a big improvement on the ice cream pails they've all been in for the last several weeks. for the life of me, i could not find my cumin last week, but it did turn up when i unpacked them. must have been the only one i didn't pick up and check.

usually i put my oils and vinegars in a lower cupboard, but it made sense for them to go here in this kitchen. except they're supposed to be stored at room temperature. anybody think they'll get too warm above the stove top? i have a lot of random cereals i need to eat up so i can have room for fresh ones that i actually want. except the raisin bran - it's there intentionally.

beneath my cooking cupboard are my utensils and microwave, which currently holds my collection of small white creamers and other small glass and ceramic pieces.

i'm not sure yet what all will land in these baskets, but i like them here and they will probably stay.

so that's the kitchen tour. if you ever come to my house, you know your way around the better part of the kitchen. :-)