When we did our huge kitchen renovation we carved out a nook for a wet bar/coffee bar and I’m so glad we did. The wet bar has proved to be a super functional space to house all the bar and coffee accessories and cut down on foot traffic in the kitchen when we’re entertaining. However, I knew I wanted to eventually do something with the backsplash. I considered and mocked up several tile, wallpaper and paneling options but never pulled the trigger. Over a year later and still craving an update to the nook, I decided to take a paintbrush to it. Paint is the easiest and most affordable option to start with and easy to revert back if we didn’t love it.

Before we get into that, check out how the wet bar has evolved over time.

This is how it looked when we shared the wet bar reveal last year. We were still missing a handle for the mini-fridge but that has since been resolved. 😉

Updating Our Wet Bar with Black Paint

I painted the backsplash black (we used Sherwin Williams Tricorn), added some new vintage accessories, re-arranged the glassware and re-styled everything and man, it felt good.… Read more

It’s been about 6 months since we had our range hooked up as part of the big kitchen reno. I’ve had a lot of questions and comments about our show-stopper range so I wanted to do a review. So here you go, an in-depth Aga Elise range review from my perspective. I’m addressing some of the questions I’ve recieved and added some of my own.

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Aga Elise Range Review

What range is that?

We have an Aga Elise 5-element, dual-fuel range in matte black. It features a true convection oven, a 7-mode multi-function oven and a pull-out broiler. Aga’s have been around since the 1920s. The first models were cast iron and were the worlds first ever heat-storage cookers. They were invented in Sweden but manufacturing moved to England in the 1930s where they gained popularity. The original cast-iron versions of the Aga (like the one below) are still made today and come in a variety of color options.… Read more

I have been meaning to share what our kitchen renovation cost since we finished a few months ago. Although the post is titled “kitchen renovation cost” it includes the kitchen as well as the areas adjacent to the kitchen that we renovated simultaneously (the powder room, mudroom, and wet bar we added). Some of the renovation expenses were not limited to just the kitchen (drywall and flooring for example). I separate expenses by room where possible, but keep in mind we were renovating several “rooms” with many expenses spanning across more than one.

What Our Kitchen Renovation Cost

Construction Costs:

• Equipment Rentals (dumpsters, scissor lift) $1700
• Floor Removal $2400
• AC Ductwork Modifications $2400
• Engineer $400
• Plumbing $3500
• Propane Tank Install & Fill $3600
• Drywall $6200
• Msc Building Supplies & Materials  $5000

Total = $25,200

The construction phase of our project was long and very involved, hence higher costs in this area. Remember, we re-routed plumbing in our foundation, removed old flooring, moved walls, re-ran a significant amount of electrical, etc. We did a ton of labor ourselves saving us thousands.… Read more