My Painted Furniture 1850 House Kitchen

I missed the Show Us Your Life Friday - Kitchens over at Kelly's Korner, but thought I'd post it anyhow, just for fun;

So, here is my kitchen:

This is where we live life, or at least I feel like I live a good part of mine.

There are three entrances into our kitchen: this is from the office/pantry room.  The island sits in the middle of the kitchen and divides the work area from the eating area.  Someday, if only in my dreams, I'd like to redo this island, but it works for now.

This is looking to the left of the island...

and this is looking to the right of the island.  We'll proceed this way.

There's not much room for dirty dishes or such next to the sink, so I painted this cart on wheels to catch miscellaneous items.

  Against the wall is one of my favorite pieces of furniture which we actually got as two separate pieces and I painted to go together.  The bottom half we got at a yard sale for $20, and the top half was an item that my aunt found at the dump.  My husband then put cabinet doors on it for me.

 The cabinet doors are the background for my blog.

The top of the buffet was a veneer that was peeling off, so we tore it all off, sanded it, and I painted it a slate look with some designs that I liked.  I also painted the tray that I now use to cart things when we eat on the porch.  It is supposed to resemble myself and my husband.  

(Just so you know though, my husband would never be caught wearing clothes such as these, especially the colonial collar).

I painted the two canisters to sell, but then changed my mind and decided to keep them.  

I do that sometimes, and then change my mind later and sell them when I find something else I like better;

but these two have stuck around so long, I've grown attached to them.

Here's our wonderful kitchen table and new old chairs.  New-used chairs?  Maybe that's the correct term.  But let me direct your attention to the built in corner shelves.

Do you think I should paint them?  I debate with myself over this and need some guidance.

These shelves have seen way too many items perched in their hold, but I've finally settled on these, 

for now.  

I tend to like too much and it gets cluttered.

These are some of my favorite things.

The bottom shelf holds my daughter's tea things.  She and her brother enjoy tea or hot chocolate on cold afternoons, so these are for them.

Occasionally a guest joins them.

You can be that guest if you stop by.

It is usually served around 2pm.

But, please, don't all come at once.

The chicken casserole dish was something my husband and I saw at a yard sale, and he actually got it for me.  I do not say this with any sarcasm,

well, very remote sarcasm.  I tend to be a hoarder, and he helps me out with that.

So this is my prize chicken dish because it is from him and I love the way it looks.

(It holds my secret stash of treats so nobody will get them.)

The strawberry china mug was a gift from my grandmother on one of her trips,

the dish in the background was my husband's great-grandmother's, and the wooden chicken was a craft his grandfather made.

The third shelf carries a cross-stitch made by my oldest sister and some glass chickens I had as a child.  The pewter mug holds the marbles my children earn and put in a jug for doing good school or jobs; they get to go out for breakfast with their dad when they fill the jar.

Plus then I know where all the marbles are and don't find them all over the house.

See, I haven't lost my marbles.

 Here's the table and chairs and our happy fish.

 This was the table before I sanded, stained, and painted it.  I need dark furniture living on a farm,

with a farmer,

and 3 kids.

 This is looking at the table from the front door.

 This cupboard it behind the front door.  It houses the dishes

1. so my children can reach them to put them away and set the table

2. because the kitchen cupboards are cheap and I'm afraid they are shedding their formaldehyde-laden dust;  we can't get them replaced right now as we've had to replace all the windows, some of the ceilings and light fixtures, clad the barn, buy a tractor and manure spreader, redo the bathroom, build a new fireplace, etc, etc, etc.

So new cupboards are somewhere after getting a skid-loader, fencing the back field, finishing cladding the barn, and enclosing the back porch.

 Levi likes this anyhow.  He thinks I painted him on there.

Above this cupboard is a picture of our farm from back in the 50's.  The man who used to live here sweetly gave it to us.

 And here is my work station

(the bad cabinets are on the bottom).

 The look from the sink.

The large platter was my great grandmother's.

The wooden bowl was my husband's grandfather's; it is filled with old wooden utensils from his aunt.  I wish I could display them better but not sure how.

I like red accents

and chickens.

 My stove (cooking some ham pot pie.)

Please excuse the drying plastic bags.  I wish I could find a better way to dry them out of view.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

The hideous trash can is being replaced.  I am in the process of painting one I FINALLY found to fit that spot.  It's mighty hard to find something that narrow but big enough to be of use.  I will be revealing my new treasure when it is completed in a week or two.

  

Thanks for traipsing about my kitchen with me.