Eye Spy an Ugly Kitchen

I promised I would share some before pictures of our kitchen and master bath this week, so without further adieu ...

OK, first let me tell you how hard this is for me.

I'm perfectly fine sharing pictures of my 12-year-old afro hair because I don't still have afro hair. But this kitchen photo is difficult to share because it was taken this morning, and when I get home tonight, my kitchen will still be this way.

To make me more comfortable with sharing, let's make an eye spy game out of it. Here's picture no. 1, can you find the following items:

• Mr. Baxter
• Cantaloupe
• Smoke Detector
• Clementine
• Lint Roller
• Step Ladder

Truthfully, I hate this kitchen for a lot of reasons.

1. The look of it: Our house is old, classic and filled with character. This kitchen is a poor reflection of that, as a result of some late 80s remodeling. There's more dark green wallpaper (the exact same stuff we just removed from our dining room) - on the walls, on the ceiling, on the light fixtures. And then there's the fruit backsplash. Please don't get me started on this.

2. It's not functional: You can't work on the cooktop and open the fridge at the same time. Or open the oven and open the fridge. All the work space comes with no counter space.

So the plan is to more or less gut the space, but we're also going to make some modifications to the layout. The wall behind the refrigerator will be knocked out. The fridge will turn 90 degrees counter clockwise and back up to the space where the microwave currently sits. This will completely open up the space and even give us room for an island. I'm thrilled about the additional work space.
 
The cute little built-in buffet/cabinet thingy near the dining room will stay the same with some updates, including a possible wine fridge.
 
Right now, we're at the conceptual stage of our remodel. I'm tearing out magazine page, trying to get an idea of what I like. And it may take a while since I work out of town during the week and only have Saturdays to really shop around and find the materials I like. My ultimate goal is to restore this kitchen to the character it probably once had. To get rid of those white floors. And to never see a strip of that green wallpaper again as long as I live!