Get The Look of a Designer Kitchen

The challenge- 

A designer kitchen without the a designer price tag

     Doable? Any designer will tell you. Yes!

     It meant more work, more careful and meticulous inspection and sound and shrewd decisions. 

     But doable! 

     I promise to update this post as soon as I find the before pics but for now just imagine the old kitchen; chunky tiled counters of substandard height, low ceiling with not enough storage space. That is to say the least.

     Started with a pin board... 

 

Work in progress....

     

 And voila!

The wall that was the exterior of the house was treated with a big picture window and shows a view of the garden.

 

The glass doors hold her china.

     More than anything I am gladly sharing this post because this project was a joy to do. My client knew exactly what she wanted and I simply acted as the design police. Once again proves my point that the best projects are those where clients completely trust their architect and vice versa with both parties working together (This is a lie the best projects are those where the clients gives his architect free rein. Haha!)...So this falls unde the second best projects. haha!.... And  I really love doing kitchens. =-)

    The cost? Less than half of a designer kitchen! =-)Not bad!

Happily Mundane: My Week (on Instagram)

      Weather is getting weirder and weirder in Manila. It has been a rainy week but temperatures are still high. I know, not a very good equation and everyone is complaining of course. Dreary weather = dreary days and the rainy season has just started.....

     In spite of that, the week sailed too quickly by and the weekend is upon us again. How was your week?

     Allow me to share while trying to sort it out in my head myself, snippets from my rainy week. (on Instagram)

      Can't start the week without a little styling. Here is my night stand with my favorite things....That is my beautiful grandmother in that pretty frame. She was a pharmacist and a graduate of the University of the Philippines. Now, you wonder why I am so smart? Kidding! I love my Lola that's why I want her close by always.

     Rainy weather means bad traffic and much to my earlier resistance I am now reading my fourth book. Surely beats traffic blues...

     Tuesday was the worst day and classes were suspended but I was in Pico De Loro in Batangas to do an ocular for a project. This is the condo lobby. It was hmm...okay.

 

     At least the resto there serves good food. This was Seafood and Sausage Pasta! Yum!

 

     My driver never fails to be absent one day in each week....He was absent last Thursday...This makes me immobile which my dog loves since I get to spend time with him....Samson, my chow-chow.

 

     Plus I had time sit down and work on other stuff.....

     Mundane, ordinary and boring it might have been but it ended on a happy note...This project is almost done and ready for turnover, baby!

 

     I tried to convince my client to change her mind about the yellow cabinets but it is her kitchen. I think we make a good team. What do you think?

     So happy! It made me think the rainy season has just started we have months and weeks to go. I need to switch from dreary-rainy- weather mode to hey-the-flowers-are-growing, we-need-rain-too or something like that and for me this sunny, yellow kitchen just did the trick!

     Happy Rainy Season to my fellow Manila peeps!

     Laters!

     (I bet some of you know what I have been reading on my iPad...wink, wink!)