here is an old image of our kitchen as it looked when we moved in. the sink was installed such long time ago that water could pour down into the cabinet underneath any time someone splashed some water out over the edges. there was no way to use the dishwasher because the rinsing water would splash all over the counter top any time the machine needed a rinse. the electric stove was similarly interesting. one christmas day, as we were heating up some soup on it, the whole thing (the entire stove with oven) fell between the two cabinets that were supporting it.
we tried to give the kitchen a "face-lift" first, by painting the cabinets inside and out. it was a fun project (we even painted the walls yellow), but of course all the problems remained. the drawers were squeaking so loudly when one pulled them out just a tiny bit, the noise could wake a sleeping person up. the water was damaging the cabinets all around the sink. the cabinets in general were small, narrow, and some of them were awkwardly sized and shaped. we wanted to change the pantry door to a sliding pocket door so we could have more space for the fridge door. the floor used to be covered with linoleum; today there is a bamboo floor throughout the entire living area.
to make the transition between kitchen and living room smoother, we opened the walls above an old doorway. we decided to use the space above the old cabinets and designed an extra row on top with lighting. painted over the yellow paint, pulled out the old appliances, and completely redesigned all the cabinets.
