Bewitchin' Kitchen Updates

My friend Scoobie's been working hard on redoing her kitchen, and I thought you folks might enjoy seeing some of the still-in-progress transformation.

For long-time readers, you might remember, she's the friend who bought a house last year and has been decorating it in a Western arts-and-crafts style. She's also my co-conspirator in Fiesta dishware obsession, though where I lean toward pastels, she favors the Tangerines, Evergreens and Browns.

When it started, her kitchen was kinda... dull... and not at all Western. The previous owners had gone with a moden coffee-themed wallpaper, that was somehow simultaneously not very interesting and also strangely busy-looking.

You can see some of the wallpaper here-- lots of little coffee cans-- and the thing was topped with a Very Coffee Wallborder.

Fine, I'm sure, in its time, but not really what Scoobie was going for...

So the more she looked at it, the more Scoobie decided the wallpaper had to go. She and her younger brother spent a week removing paper...

And then painting. Based on her dinner plates, which feature orange Western mesas and green cactii, my friend chose her color scheme. The orange paint (it's called "Indian Paintbrush" and it looks quite a bit brighter here than it does in natural light), is the same shade as her Tangerine Fiestaware dishes.

(Which you can see happily nestled on her green baker's rack.)

The piece of furniture below-- part pie-safe, part hutch, or as Scoobie gleefully refers to it, "the Putch"-- was designed and built by her dad specifically for this space...

It's pretty, simple, and incredibly functional. All canned goods and soda bottles become nestled away!

I noticed she's using the orange and green arts-and-crafts style breadbox I'd found for her at the Red, White and Blue Thrift Store in Bellevue a few months ago...
And even the apples of the season have a good home here in her happy Fiesta bowls!
Going forward, she wants to add some plate rails to display some green-and-orange Victorian pottery dishes with deer, pheasants and other game transferred on them.

She also would like to display her tin enamelware kitchenalia. This should help tone down the orange a bit.

As I said, it's a work in progress, but so far nobody misses those wallpaper coffee cups. If she's up for it, I'll share pictures with you all in the future as more things come together.

And so comes together the end of today's post! I hope to see you Wednesday to talk secondhand treasures. Take care, folks!

7 comments:

Donna said...

Looking good so far. Love the
"putch" :)

D

Rhet said...

Our kitchen is currently burdened by red wallpaper with ten (10!) little motifs repeated all around: a little house, a blue rooster weathervane, a jug with flowers in it, a tree with red apples, a basket with yellow apples, a pseudo Hex sign, two versions of floral borders, and a blue fake cross stitch sampler saying "Bless this House".

It is eye-boggling. The backsplash area, that was coffee beans scampering around on Scoobie's walls, is cream-colored with little individual cross-stitch style tulips.

We look forward to either making it all go away, or running away someday to a kitchen without such chaotic and ugly wallpaper.

Jackie Jardine said...

That kitchen looks great! I love the color scheme. It's got a nice, homey feel to it.

Jenn Thorson said...

D- Heh, Scoobie will be happy to have another convert to the usage of the word "putch." :)

Rhet- I can totally understand that. I appreciate country style as much as the next person, but some wallpapers to my taste are simply TOO BUSY. Timeless is great, but when you can pinpoint the wallpaper style to-- "Ah, this was Country Style 1992" it's probably time to give it up.

Jackie- It's really coming along. She'll be so happy to hear people think it's homey, too.

very merry vintage style said...

Looks so warm and cozy... it will be fun to decorate for fall in that kitchen!

Juliana said...

The wall colour is so warm, almost mexican cantina style!

Jenn Thorson said...

Merry Vintage- I think she's kinda getting into it. Every time I visit, I see new updates!

Juliana- That's what it reminds me of, too. I'll tell her that. It may give her some more ideas. She's really embracing this whole interior decorating thing. It's fun to watch.