Hobbits In Rivendell

I thought after the stove, we should work on the microwave… I checked on the Consumer Reports microwave comparisons, and frankly, I think we may as well simply build a sturdy shelf for the microwave in the garage, and use it. It has a turntable, it’s new-ish, and it’ll work until it doesn’t… at which time, we’ll invest in another one. AND, it’s black…

You know, I think I’m painting the fridge black.

Don’t be scared. I might not. But appliance paint is easy enough to come by… I might just do the sides and leave the doors white. Or, just do the doors…

The mind boggles with the things they come up with on Trading Spaces. And while we admit that it isn’t always something that works for long, I have been reading the “chatter” again, and, after checking with the hivemind, and looking at the chalkboard paint in DA’s house, I’m a believer… some paints do work. On the other hand, we could always take the doors to a body shop, and get them done quickly there. Or we could use contact paper. OR, we could live with a glaring white fridge and black stove and dishwasher. Worse things have happened… Much worse. And besides, if the floor is going to be blonde, natural bamboo, it’ll be very pale and yellowish.

Unless that’s not the color we choose. Unless we go with one of the two shades of carbonized.
And I guess that’s what’s left to decide about the floor. Lemony pale, or carbonized sugary brown? Straight lines or narrow planks? Should we check out stains? I guess my biggest concern is that the dark floors and dark appliances will make the kitchen… dark. When I think, though, of the kitchen banquette seating, with perhaps a bamboo veneer or a pale stained base and a brightly colored (but not light colored — can’t have light colored cushions where we’re sitting and eating, since we’re unashamedly shlobs) cushion cover, maybe something stripey to match the drapes (that company does sell fabric, methinks, if you want the same colors — after all the trouble we took to get the @#$%^&*! things we should keep them, maybe?), the whole little kitchen/dining area might not be half bad. Add to it the half wall if we cut down the pantry, adding in more light, and it might be a really nice addition… IF we can cut down the pantry wall without it impacting the electrical or the beams in the house…

Ah, decisions, decisions…

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OK, folks, we decided. The pretty little number to the right (found at Sears, of course) will be ariving here within the next couple of weeks.

With that, it’s time for sleep, to awake and decide on flooring….

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I’m beginning to think we should rename this blog: ‘Wish I Weren’t Remodeling.’ Kitchens = Headaches

Not really headaches, per se, but mental gymnastics as we think of what can go wrong (everything) what we might do incorrectly (most things) and how much it’s going to cost (all we’ve got, plus). It’s something that’s causing us some oddly restless nights, and bizarre appliances dreams.

But, we soldier on.

Of course, we want to be environmentally conscious in the kitchen, so we’re doing a bit of research to make sure we do this remodel thing correctly. According to the EnergyStar people, when planning a new kitchen, one should be careful not to put the refrigerator next to any other appliances. Apparently, appliances need buffers around them so they operate correctly and efficiently.

Oh.

Let’s translate that into Wee Little House terms: SPACE is not what our kitchen has. THIS is not going to work in our kitchen.

(Maybe.)

In all of our remodeling schemes, we’ve never even thought of moving the fridge anywhere. I wonder why that is. In reality, we could put the fridge into a sort of built-in cubby hole, where the built-in microwave is now. A step saver between the sink and the fridge, one would only need to pivot to get what was needed, and then that entire corner would be open for …cabinets. And a hanging microwave. Open shelves. Cook books. A small screen TV. Hmm.

This morning’s Ponder du Jour included realizing that we have NOTHING gas related except in our garage and on the second floor for the water heater. Ah, the 70’s, when the Wee Little House was shiny and gadgety and new, and all this electrical crap was ultra-modern. Now we long for gas, and have… electric everything. Do we go ahead and punch through the kitchen floor to run gas into the room? Will it be that easy? Do we have to punch more holes in the house to get the kitchen we want?

At some point, do we acknowledge that this isn’t our Dream House or our Dream Kitchen, and make it the best it can be as it is?

Sigh.

Our stove search is centering on an electric stove. Consumer Reports this month says that the Kenmore 964 is the best for the electric smooth top models, but in researching glass-topped stoves, we’ve had some questions… A.) I’m not world’s best housekeeper; the other cook in the house is… um, worse. You have to clean glass top stoves immediately or else the stains are permanent; acidic and sugary boil-overs become part of the stove. B.) We don’t want to replace all of our pots, and though flat-bottomed is the only real requirement we’ve come across, but some folks were advised NOT to use glass pots on them, without an explanation given. In any case, the main issue is canning ware… do people can on glass-topped stoves? Yes, BUT, boil-overs can pit the glass, a heavy pot or cast iron being set down too hard can shatter it, as can anything falling on it. If the elements are painted on (which I don’t think anyone does on new stoves anymore), it can be scratched off within the first week.

I think a glasstop stove sounds like too much trouble for people who really cook, shake pans to sauteé, use cast iron, and forever have a kettle on the hob. One is supposed to use ceramic pots for glass top. Well, I don’t have any of those, so sorry. “Oh, but they’re so much easier to clean!” Um, well, that’s as may be. But if you keep a brand-new stove reasonably clean… it won’t turn into the gunky horror that came with this house. It’s that simple. It’s all about maintenance… something millions of people are apt to do very poorly.

Stay tuned as we debate whether chrome is really worth an additional $200, if black or shows fingerprints worse, if bisque is an actual color, and if the color of the floor really plays at all into the color of the appliances… or if we’ll go with bamboo all over, or with tile in the kitchen, or what we’re doing at all…

After all this talk, STILL, nothing whatsoever to do with baking, darn it.

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We thought, for a second, of getting an induction oven.

That being said, we must also admit that we didn’t really know what an induction oven IS.

An induction oven is *NOT* just a smooth-top electric stove, although I suppose it has a smooth top and looks reasonably electric. No. It’s something else. It’s something that works via electromagnetic field, prompting people who work where phrases like Clinical Electrophysiology are common, to question whether or not people just mightn’t get radiation sickness from these fine scientifically progressive machines.

I know we might like to bake and all, but I’m not sure this one’s worth it. For one thing, Consumer Reports doesn’t carry any comparison pricing, etc., info on it, because it’s too new and not yet a really ‘finished’ product for mass production in full ranges. For another thing, it’s priceeeey just to buy the single cooker units, pricewise, it’s the equivalent of buying a single electric burner for almost $200, and I’m not sure what baking we do is worth the cost. third, there’s the whole EKG disruption, radiation poisoning thing people worry about from cell phones and all of that. Now, there’s more information than you could ever want on induction ovens on the web, and no one says the death-via-radiation theory is true, but I do wonder if the rumors didn’t start just because it’s such an energy saver appliance.

Anyway, the price checking continues. Meanwhile, something must be done soon… the range situation is dire. Lest I sounds like an obsessive one-note on the topic of the remodel, I will just say I am having dreams about Kenmore appliances. Be afraid.

Meanwhile, in more food ramblings, amusing ex-pat Chris Cope enjoys some of the best flavors of the UK… one wonders if the ox crisps are spit roasted or what.

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