Heaven on Earth

Heaven on Earth

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Kitchen Reveals at Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Penny (Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen) asked me to join in her 2nd annual kitchen reveal.  I love my kitchens; they're cozy and warm and my favorite places to be. I'm happy to share a few photos.
This is the country kitchen in our 1865 limestone homestead.  We are lucky to be the stewards of this lovely old home, with it's rich and abundant history. We are reminded of that past every time our feet sink into the grooves left on the original wooden stairs and thresh holds; grooves made by the early pioneer inhabitants of our home.  When we bought the house, the kitchen was in the main part of the house and there was a 1920's lean-to on the back (it's last incarnation was as a beauty salon of all things).  But the old kitchen left a lot to be desired  and we wanted to restore the original part of the house to be as historically accurate as we could...

Before...1920's lean-to/beauty salon

During...


And after...Modern Kitchen
so we tore off the dreary, dilapidated lean-to/beauty salon and added a large cozy kitchen/mudroom with radiant-heat floors on to the back of the house, restoring the original house...well, back to original. 
This room is definitely the heart of our home and it's where we spend most of our time.  I love the double farm sink and large peninsula and island work space.  The charcoal gray soapstone counters are perfect for rolling doughs and making candy or bread.  The stacking washer/dryer is nestled in the corner closet by the range.  But the gem of the kitchen is the double Viking farmhouse range and griddle.  I do most of my garden preserving and jamming here because it is so spacious.   The original part of the house has no closets so the storage space in the new kitchen is essential.  I'd love to give those pioneer women a tour of my kitchen.  Wouldn't they be astounded by the wonderful time-saving devices we have today?  Light years away from the old wood-burning free-standing stoves that were originally here.  I almost feel a little guilty at having so many" kitchen riches"...almost, but not quite

Thanks Penny for letting me share.  I look forward to seeing the other kitchen reveals.  If you'd like to see them too, go here.

And hop on over here if you haven't already entered my CSN give-away.

15 comments:

  1. I have often marveled at how our ancestors managed to put together 3 meals a day using a fireplace and/or a wood burning stove.

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  2. Bonnie, Thank you so much for sharing your kitchen. It is truly a thing of beauty and obviously lovingly restored.

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  3. Wow - what a remodel - into such a grand area.

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  4. I LOVE your kitchen! So much history.... old, but like new! I could spend all day there. Thanks for the tour!

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  5. I love Penny's kitchen reveal day. Your kitchen looks so homey. I scrolled down and saw the gang for Thanksgiving. What a family feast that must have been.

    thanks for showing, i just posted mine.

    Gonna go take a look at your archives.

    Dave

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  6. I love your kitchen but the whole house is fabulous. You've done a wonderful job.

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  7. Your kitchen is wonderful and your whole house is fabulous. You've done a great job.

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  8. After commenting about your kitchen, I had a little time to browse your blog and noticed we have a couple of things in common - BBQ and the occasional D.O. cook for me. On one of you posts, you mentioned living in a pretty area and I agree - in our youth we spent quite a bit of time skiing in the Utah mountains.

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  9. WOW - I love your kitchen - the new and the old = perfect!!! The space must be amazing!

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  10. Oh my gosh, I LOVE your kitchen too! I think I'd spend all my days in there:) What a treasure of a home! It's just beautiful!

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  11. Your spacious kitchen must be great when you preserve foods!

    It is amazing how our ancestors cooked foods at hand over a fireplace in a small space.

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  12. What a lovely kitchen. I am glad to be a new follower. I will have to check a little further into your archives. Thanks for visiting me also. Susan

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  13. It's the dream of so many, to restore an old place. I love what you've done - your kitchen is a dream. Wouldn't the 1800's housewife be stunned!?

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  15. I love your kitchen. Still want to take a field trip to visit your country home someday...

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